Revolving ball conveyor and supporting device



M. C. TIECK Aug. 23, 1955 REVOLVING BALL CONVEYOR AND SUPPORTING DEVICEFiled Sept. 10 1951 MAX C. TIECK 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

M. 'C. TIECK Aug. 23, 1955 REVOLVING BALL CONVEYOR AND SUPPORTING DEVICEFiled Sept. 10 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

MAX C. TIECK ATTORNEY United States Patent Mil REVOLVING BALL CONVEYORAND SUPPORTING DEVICE Max C. Tieck, Oroville, Calif.

Application September 10, 1951, Serial No. 245,930

1 Claim. (Ci. 211-94) The present invention relates to a revolving ballconveyor and supporting device and it consists in the combinations,constructions and arrangements of parts herein described and claimed.

Generally there is provided a revolving ball conveyor and supportingdevice which in each of several forms s which the invention may assumecomprises a ball or a pair of balls mounted in a trackway or pair oftrackways as the case may be and which in each case supports in a novelmanner a hook or the like which depends therefrom. A novel spacerarrangement is provided between the adjacent hooks and the devices arecapable of a variety of uses such as supporting kitchen articles as, forexample, cups, pots, pans and the like or may be used to support acollapsible curtain or like device.

It is accordingly an object or" the invention to provide a novel ballsupported, trackway mounted, conveyor hook.

Another object of the invention is to provide devices of the characterset forth which are simple in construction, inexpensive to manufactureand yet eflective and efiicient in use.

Still another object of the invention is the provision, in devices ofthe character set forth, of novel trackways forming parts of theinvention.

A further object of the invention is the provision, in one form of theinvention wherein a pair of balls are utilized, of novel means forsupporting a hook therebetween.

A further object of the invention is'the provision, in devices of thecharacter set forth, of novel means for mounting housings forming partsof the invention.

Other and further objects of the invention will become apparent from areading of the following specification taken in conjunction with thedrawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the invention shownmounted upon a ceiling,

Figure 2 is a fragmentary exploded perspective View illustrating certaindetails of construction involved in the device illustrated in Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along line33 of Figure 1,

Figure 4 is a fragmentary exploded perspective view illustrating anotherform the invention may assume,

Figure 5 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating still anotherform the invention may assume,

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken along line 66 of Figure 5,

Figure 7 is a view similar to Figure 6 but illustrating a housing whichmay be utilized therewith,

Figure 8 is a sectional view taken along line 8-8 of Figure 7,

Figure 9 is an exploded perspective view of still another form theinvention may assume,

Figure 10 is a vertical sectional view illustrating the device of Figure9 shown in assembled condition,

2,715,966 Patented Aug. 23, 1955 Figure 11 is a plan view of acompletely assembled trackway which may be utilized in the invention,and

Figure 12 is a view similar to Figure 11 but illustrating another shapethe trackway may assume.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, there is shown therein, inFigures 1 to 3, inclusive, an elongated tubular trackway 10 the ends ofwhich are closed by means of caps 11 and which is provided along oneside with a longitudinal slot 12. Atop the trackway 10 there is mountedrelatively small looped handles 13 each of which is adapted to receivetherein an arm 14 of a support member generally designated at 15 andillustrated in detail in Figure 2 and which support member is providedwith an integrally formed arcuate leg 16 and an integrally formedupwardly extending screw 17 which is adapted to be engaged in, forexample, a ceiling 18 or the like.

Revolubly mounted within the trackway 10 is a plurality of balls 19which may be formed of wood, plastic material or other suitable materialand each of which is provided with a diametrically extending opening 20for the reception therethrough of a horizontally extending axle 21 thefree end of which is swedged, as indicated at 22, and the other end ofwhich has revolubly mounted thereon a collar 23.

integrally formed with the unswaged end of the axle 21 is an arcuatedownwardly and inwardly extending support arm 24 having integrallydependent therefrom a hook 25. A short vertical section 26 interconnectsthe members 24 and and spacer bars 27 each provided with clamps 28 attheir outer ends, may be engaged over adjacent portions 26 to therebyspace the balls 19 and their attendant mechanisms.

In the operation of this form of the invention, it will be apparent thatthe entire device may be suspended from a ceiling 18 or the like bymeans of the support members 15 and that the same will be rigidly heldin position by means of the bottom portions of the members 14 and 16.From the hooks 25 there may be suspended various articles such as cups,the handles of knives and forks where the same may be provided with eyesor a shower curtain or like device may be suspended upon a plurality ofsuch hooks 25. When it is desired to space the various units composed ofthe balls 19 and their attendant mechanisms, it is only necessary tointerconnect adjacent portions 26 by means of the spacer bars 27, aswell illustrated in Figure 1 of the drawings. Chains may be utilizedinstead of the bars 27 when it is desired to provide flexibility in suchan assembly.

In the form of the invention illustrated in Figure 4 there is provided ahousing which is generally indicated at 30 and which is provided with aflattened top portion 31 from either side of which depends an inwardlydirected, integrally formed trackway 32 which trackways 32 extendlongitudinally and the lower ends of which provide an opening 33therebetween.

In each of the trackways 32 there is positioned a ball 34 each of whichis provided with a diametrically extending opening 35 for the receptionof a transversely extending axle 36 the outer ends of which may beswaged when the same are extended through the balls 34. Collars 37 maybe mounted upon the axle 36 inwardly of each of the balls 34 to maintainthe same in proper alignment. A hook 38 is provided with an upwardlyextending shank 39 having an integrally formed eye 40a at its upper endwhich eye is adapted to encircle the central portion of the axle 36whereby the hook 38 may extend downwardly through the opening 33. Holes41a are provided at suitable positions in the flattened portion 31 sothat the housing 30 may be attached to a ceiling or the like. Theoperation of this form of the "ice tion 41.

Again, in this form of the invention, there is provided a pair of balls45 of any suitable material each of which is revolubly mounted in one ofthe trackways 42. A hook 46 is provided with an integrally formed eye 47V which is of a size to receive the inner portions of the balls 45therein,

In operation, it will be seen that the form of the invention illustratedin Figures 5 and 6 will act identically with those heretofore describedand at the same thus may be interconnected by bars or chains to spacethe same.

In Figures 7 and 8 there is illustrated the device shown in Figures 5and 6 with the addition of an outer casing 48 which is of invertedU-shaped cross sectional area andwhich has its bight portion aflixed tothe upper side of the flattened portion 41 by welding, as indicatedat49. One of the dependent legs of the outer casing 48 is provided withkey slots 50 whereby the same may be attached to a Wall. The deviceotherwise is identical with that shown in Figures 5 and 6.

Referring now to that form of the iHVEDfiOIIdHUS',

v trated in Figures 9 and 10, it will be seen that there is provided anelongated tubular housing 60 in which may be mounted a plurality ofballs 61 each provided with an inwardly extending circumferential slot62 which slot leaves a core 63 centrally within the ball 61.

Loosely surrounding the core 63 is an eye 64 from which depends anintegrally formed shank 65 having a hook 66 integrally formed at thelower end thereof.

The housing 60 is provided with'a longitudinal slot 67 in its lowennostportion. The operation of this form of the invention will be identicalwith that heretofore described with the remainder of the illustrationsin this 4 application and it will be apparent'that the shank 65adjoining one another may be interconnected by bars 27 or by chainswhereby to space the same from one another.

In Figure 11 there is illustrated a substantially ovular trackway whichmay be of any of the forms above-,

described and which may be joined together, as indicated at 70. InFigure 12 there is shown a circular trackway which is joined together asindicated at 71,

the trackway being shown as one of those illustrated, for example, inFigure 4, Figure 5 but which may be of any suitable type illustratedherein. a

While only certain forms of the invention have been shown and describedherein, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art thatmany minor modifications may be made without departing from the spiritof the invention or the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

A device of the character described comprising an elongatedchannel-shaped housing having a longitudinal slot centrally located inthe underside thereof, means for supporting said housing, trackways ofsemicircular cross section forming the sides of said housing, pairs ofballs of substantially the diameter of said trackways revolubly mountedtherein, an eye member interposed between each of said pairs of balls,said pairs of balls being laterally spaced apart less than the thicknessof said eye member, said eye member having a circular opening adapted toreceive portions of said 'balls, and a hook member depending from saideye member and extending through the slot.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS555,603 Harvey et a1 Mar. 3, 1896 581,621 Schenker Apr. 27, 1897 640,7237 White et a1. Jan. 2, 1900 712,163 White Oct. 28, 1902 1,230,440 SteeleJune 19, 1917 1,249,972 Kurtz Dec. 11, 1917 1,389,538 Taylor Aug. 30,1921 1,598,479 Day et al. Aug. 31, 1926 1,650,496 Day Nov. 22, 1927.

